4-Ingredient Almond Crunch Milk Chocolates (Krokanrull)

Super duper easy Milk Chocolates with Almond Crunch made with only 4 ingredients! They are the perfect edible Christmas gift - you get a lot of bang for your buck with these minimal effort milk chocolates. Based on a Norwegian favorite, the Krokanrull.

 

 

If you like to make your own version of store bought chocolates, I can also recommend my take on Rolos or Center, salted caramel filled milk chocolates!

 

Edible Christmas Gifts are my favorite. I get to bake AND give a gift in one activity. The gifts are more personal and given much more thought into than buying yet another sweater and scented candles you don't really need (ok, maybe I do both). And so each year, I always make several bags of mixed chocolates and truffles to give to friends.

 

I usually include these almond crunch milk chocolates, peppermint filled dark chocolates, peppermint cream cheese filled truffles, peppermint patties and dreamy creamy chocolate coffee truffles. I have a few others in my arsenal as well, but you'll have to wait for those. Meanwhile, these will be more than enough to fill a versatile gift bag where there's something for everyone!

 

Speaking of gift bags, check this box of chocolates post out for ideas to make chocolatey edible gifts for Christmas (or any other time)!

 

 

What is Krokan - the Almond Crunch?

 

So in essence, these almond crunch milk chocolates contain two things; krokan and milk chocolate. Krokan is caramelized sugar with almonds and butter. The word 'krokan' derives from the French word 'croquant' which means crunchy or crisp. So I'm translating it to almond crunch!

 

It is really easy to make, even easier than those traditional pecan pralines, as there's no need for a candy thermometer. Begin by adding parchment paper to a baking tray and gathering the ingredients (1). In a cast iron skillet, add the butter. And once the butter has just melted, add in the sugar. Give it a stir with a wooden spoon, it will look lumpy (2).

 

 

Add in the whole almonds, there's no need to skin them (3). Keep stirring on medium-low heat for around 10 minutes.

 

It will look like grainy and lumpy for a while, but after around 10 minutes the sugar will start to melt again and it smells nutty and caramelized (4). It may be sooner for you, so just keep an eye on it. Once this happens, quickly transfer the mixture over to the parchment paper. Smooth it out into one layer of almonds (5).

 

This mixture now needs to cool down to crisp up. Around 30 minutes to an hour. Once it's cool, crack it into smaller pieces and place in a bag (6). Now it's time to crushing it with something heavy, like a rolling pin (7). Keep on crushing until it's pretty fine, like in the photo (8).

 

 

This krokan will last for about 3 months in an airtight container, although we will use it right away!

 

How long do milk chocolates last? Can they freeze?

 

As the almond crunch lasts for three months, these milk chocolates can last equally long. It may depend on how you store them of course. When chocolate starts to whiten, it's still ok to eat, it's just lacking that deep, delicious chocolate flavor. But seriously though, these will NEVER last that long. I have made a batch this year and I'm starting to realize I need to make another batch to give to friends and family, as I've eaten a big chunk out of them already (and I'm only on day 2 ½).

 

You can freeze them, but there's really no need for that, as they last pretty long in an airtight container in semi-cold room temperature.

 

 

You Don't Like Nuts in Chocolates?

 

Hey, me neither! But I am confident you will like these. Even kids love krokanrull in Norway, it's not really nutty at all. The sugar caramelizes the almonds, making it more of a sweet crunch than nutty. Of course, there's a slight hint of nuttiness, but not those big chunks of nuts you can get in Belgian pralines. Give them a try, and if you still find them too nutty - give them away!

 

 

How to make Almond Crunch Milk Chocolates

 

You've already made the krokan, or almond crunch and that's the ´hard´part. Now all we need to do is melt some chocolate. I like to break the chocolate into pieces, placing them in a large glass bowl or some other microwave safe bowl. Then I place them in the microwave for 30 seconds, give it a stir, then 30 seconds more, give it a stir. Keep on doing this until the chocolate is almost melted. Then stir until it is completely melted. This way we don't burn the chocolate.

 

 

Now add in the almond crunch. I add 3 large tablespoon for 300g (10.5 oz) milk chocolate, but any ratio will do. This almond crunch is about 6 tbsp, so roughly 21 oz for that amount is good. You can choose the closest block of chocolate you get, which is probably 5 x 4 oz blocks in the US. I highly recommend choosing high quality chocolate, as these milk chocolates only contain 4 ingredients and chocolate being the main one.

 

Pour into your favorite chocolate moulds, small bite sized are perfect for gift giving but bars are also delish. Let cool in the refrigerator. Once set, you can remove them from the moulds and keep in an airtight container.

 

 

Did You Like These Almond Crunch Milk Chocolates? Here's More Edible Christmas Gifts!

 

• Peppermint Dark Chocolates
• Easy Peppermint Patties
• Peppermint Cream Cheese Filled Chocolates
• Dreamy Creamy Chocolate Coffee Truffles
• Homemade Peppermint Marshmallows
• Dasher's Creamy Eggnog
• Fudgy Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

 

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